Ah…Disney.
Live-action remakes at Disney have been a pretty consistent practice for nearly a decade. While the first one was technically Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, released in 1994, I’ve always seen the 2015 version of Cinderella as what really cemented the idea that Disney live-action remakes could be really good, even without it being a musical.
Then The Jungle Book came out (yes, again) in 2016, and I was super eager for the next one…then my excitement after that just sort of started to slowly taper off. I mean, there were some that were great, such as the new retelling of Cruella, as well as the latest addition, Peter Pan & Wendy, but nothing really felt like it lived up to the hype that Cinderella once created for me.
However, I recently saw The Little Mermaid, starring Halle Bailey. And I can fully say that I truly enjoyed the heck out of it, more than I thought it would. So, in honor of the movie's release, I decided to head back and watch Cinderella and compare it to The Little Mermaid, in terms of how well the story was adapted, the chemistry of the leads, and more. Let’s get into it and see how these two stack up.
Let's Talk About Lily James And Halle Bailey's Performances
I don’t want to really compare and contrast when it comes to these two actresses because they both did an amazing job with their roles. Cinderella was where I first saw Lily James, and I knew that only more people were going to learn about her as time went on.
But, there’s just something so inherently sweet about her performance as Cinderella, otherwise known as Ella in the movie. Keep in mind – I didn’t even like the original film. I was a fan of many of the later Disney princess movies, featuring Belle, Mulan, even Rapunzel. Cinderella was never in my top ten, though. When James portrayed her, however…I found myself inexplicably in love with her.
She was so gentle and soft, so kind and sweet to everyone she met – she even somehow showed her stepmother kindness despite the way she treated her. It was everything good in this world and I will never get over her performance.
When watching Halle Bailey in The Little Mermaid, I felt the same way. In fact, I don’t think anyone else in the cast quite fit their role as much as Bailey did Ariel. She was able to capture that perfect balance between curiosity and innocence as a young woman, the same way we all saw her in the original movie
And yet somehow, she also is able to bring a bit of flair to the character that we never saw before, a fierceness that Ariel really needed to advance her character, and that was thanks to Bailey’s incredible performance. Don’t even get me started on her singing voice – I could listen to her sing “Part of Your World” for days.
The Animals In Cinderella Were Far Better
This is just really a small point, but man…those animals in The Little Mermaid are aggravating.
I know, I know, the animals play a much more essential role in The Little Mermaid than they do in Cinderella, but I couldn’t help but think how much better they looked in the 2015 film than in The Little Mermaid. They still looked lifelike, but had that same Disney cuteness that you would expect from them.
The ones in The Little Mermaid felt a little too fake-looking, and whenever their mouths moved, it felt very CGI – which is sort of the opposite of what you want to do in movies such as this. I know it’s hard to animate a live action-esque animal but Cinderella, in my personal opinion, just did it better.
Melissa McCarthy Was Entertaining As Heck As Ursula, And Cate Blanchett Truly Captured The Evil Nature Of The Stepmother
One of the few things I really did love about The Little Mermaid was Melissa McCarthy as Ursula, and how she truly brought the sassiness and evil nature of the sea witch to the big screen. Do I think that there was still a certain something missing from Ursula that only animation could bring? Yeah, I do. Maybe I just enjoy the expressions of animated characters more than real actors sometimes, but McCarthy still rocked the role.
Cate Blanchett still stands as one of the best live-action Disney villains in my mind, though, right up there with Angelina Jolie as Maleficent. The Evil Stepmother from Cinderella was something that became a Hollywood trope, but you can’t beat the original, and she had to be played by someone who could truly capture that essence. Blanchett was the perfect choice.
Not only did she have this utterly perfect sinister smile, but she added more layers to Lady Tremaine than I ever thought possible. I would watch a movie on her backstory – and maybe even her redemption arc, such as in Cruella.
The Love Story In The Little Mermaid Is Much More Believable Than The Animated Version, And The Chemistry In Cinderella Was Off The Charts
Disney has never really been known for their super-realistic love stories. In many of their stories, there’s always such a quick “falling in love” moment that it doesn’t feel that believable. But one of the things that 2023's The Little Mermaid did really well was making Ariel and Eric’s relationship feel a lot more realistic than it was before.
Instead of Eric falling for her over her looks or how quirky she was, he falls for her because of their shared interests, how kind she is, how sweet she is. We really see their relationship develop and grow, and even though it’s still just a time frame of a few days, I can totally understand how feelings would increase if something like that happens. It’s young love – it’s one of the strongest feelings in the world.
Cinderella doesn’t really change up much from the original “love at first sight” Disney plot. Prince Kit (the live-action version of Prince Charming) falls for her the moment he looks at her, and these two don’t meet a single other time besides the ball, where they really start to know each other.
He still ends up wanting to marry her that night, but you want to know what made it more believable? The chemistry between Lily James and Richard Madden. These two, plus the addition of their backstories, made their relationship so much better, even if it isn’t entirely how a normal relationship in real life would look. Even now, as a twenty-four year old, I still feel myself blush when these two dance together at the ball, as if they were meant to be together. It’s so good.
Cinderella Is My Favorite Of The Two - But The Little Mermaid Has A Lot Going For It
Overall, I still think Cinderella is my favorite movie – which isn’t that much of a surprise. The film had a lower budget but didn’t need to rely on visual effects as much as The Little Mermaid, which meant that more thought and care could go into other aspects, such as the story, costumes, or set pieces.
I mean, seriously – I saw Ella’s wedding dress at the end of the movie and knew instantly I wanted my wedding dress to look like that. The movie means a lot to me.
However, I will say that The Little Mermaid is one of the best Disney live-action remakes since Cinderella. I don’t personally think it’s as good, but there is a lot going for it. The music is fun (besides “Scuttlebutt”), the acting is well-done, and the love story is believable. I do think the visual effects and the CGI could have used a ton more work, but not every movie can be utterly perfect.
Honestly, I could totally see this movie becoming the more popular version of The Little Mermaid ten years down the line, when little girls who are seeing it now are talking about it with fond memories, instead of the 1989 version that I talk about it. That idea fills me with happiness, and I hope the new movie garners the fans that I do believe it deserves.
While I’m not sure how I feel about some of the remakes coming up (besides Snow White – I’m always excited for anything Rachel Zegler), if Disney keeps moving in the trend of The Little Mermaid, I have a feeling we could get some really good ones that can compare to the originals. Only time will tell.
